The game was held at the Thanh Hóa Stadium in the central province of Thanh Hóa.

With the advantage of playing on their hometurf, the hosts were determined to take three points to stop their run of poor form in the event’s recent matches.

They started with confidence and had a number of chances to take the lead in the opening exchanges. However, Nigerian striker Edward Ofere missed his chances to score the opener.

Meanwhile, the visitors played slowly and waited to counterattack. Their defence blocked the attacks of their rivals, helping Đà Nẵng to protect their goal.

After the break, the hosts still dominated the game, but after 30 minutes of the second half, Thanh Hóa weren’t able to break Đà Nẵng’s defence.

Thanh Hóa’s coach Nguyễn Đức Thắng changed his tactics and squad in pursuit of goals. He called on midfielder Vũ Minh Tuấn although he hadn’t fully recovered from injury. However, this change created a turning-point for the hosts.

In the 80th minute, through co-ordination with midfielder Bùi Văn Hiếu, Tuấn rushed to the left wing and managed to beat goalie Lê Văn Hưng of Đà Nẵng.

This was Tuấn’s first goal in a Thanh Hóa jersey this season. Earlier, Tuấn, a key player of Quảng Ninh Coal, left his team to play for Thanh Hóa on a three-year contract.

In the remaining time, Đà Nẵng fought back strongly but failed to level the score.

The match attracted the attention of media and fans nationwide as the two sides have both had success in the national premier league. Đà Nẵng have won the league three times and finished runners-up five times. They have also won the National Cup twice. While Thanh Hóa were the runners-up in the last event and finished third in 2014 and 2015.

This win also eased pressure on coach Thắng as before the 13th round under his guidance, Thanh Hóa only gained one win, two draws and three losses.

In another match, Sanna Khánh Hòa earned three points after beating Cần Thơ 2-1 at the Nha Trang Stadium.